finan



Feb. 21, 1956 c FlNAN 2,735,104

COLLAR STAY Filed March 25, 1954 FIG-3.

INVENTOR CHARLES J. FINAN United States Patent COLLAR STAY Charles J. Finan, United States Air Force Application March 25, v1954, Serial No. 418,633 6 Claims. (Cl. 2-132) The present invention relates broadly to collar stays adapted to be used with soft shirt collars, and more specifically a collarstay adapted for use with soft shirt collars when the collar is open and no tie is being used althoughnotrestricted to such use.

'Heretofore many types and kinds of collar stays have been utilized. Some of these have meritorious features but .up to now there has not been an entirely satisfactory structure adapted for maintaining a collar in neat and taut position when the collar is open. This is particularly important in the military services since frequently during summer months and in tropic areas no ties are worn with the-shirts and the collars are left unbuttoned. Especially under such conditions the collars are prone to become mussed and untidy looking, and the wearers do notpresent the required smart military appearance.

An object of the present invention is to provide a collar stay adapted for use with a single wing of the collar and when these stays are utilized for an entire collar, one for each wing, is required to serve the desired purpose.

An additional object of the present invention is to provide such a collar stay which is of sturdy and simple construction and which is relatively inexpensive to mass produce or manufacture.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide a collar stay in which means are provided for securement into the material of the collar in at least two positions, thereby insuring proper and fool-proof attachment and positioning of the stay with respect to the collar.

An additional object of the present invention, and particularly adaptable for military use, is the provision of means incorporated in the collar stay for coacting with a pin or the like of a collar ornament or pin and which will maintain the collar stay in position in the event that one or more of the securing means of the collar stay should become dislodged. Such a construction not only insures adaquate functioning of the collar stay at all times to present the required appearance of the collar, but additionally serves a very important function in preventing inadvertent exposure of a portion of the collar stay or loss of the same in the event of dislodgement from the secured position against the material of the collar.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a collar stay of a light weight and compact construction which is not noticeable when in position on a shirt collar.

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will be readily apparent from the following detailed description of an embodiment thereof when taken together with the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a portion of a shirt and collar showing the positioning of the collar stay of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the collar stay;

Fig. 3 is a partial sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1; and

2,735,104 Patented Feb. 21, 1956 Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of fastening means for the collar stay and spring actuating means therefor taken on line 4-4 of Fig. 2.

In the drawings, a portion of a shirt is shown at 10 having a collar 11 secured thereon. The collar is of a type usually associated with shirts worn by military personnel but manifestly the invention of the present application is also adapted for use with varying types and sizes of shirts and collars. The collar 11 has the usual reinforced border or edge 12 formed by means of the line of stitches 13.

The stay on my invention generally designated 14 consists of a single piece of spring wire 15 bent into triangular shape and composed of legs 16, 17 and 18. The free ends of the wire 15 are secured to a tubular spring housing 19 at the lower end of the stay. These ends '20 and 21 can be secured to housing 19 by spot welding or other desired manner well known in the art.

The leg 16, as shown in Fig.1, is adapted to lie along the substantially vertical edge or side of the collar and the leg 17 is bent at such an angle as to lie substantially in the fold between the collar 11 and the body of the shirt front 10 and parallel to the folded edge. A coiled spiral spring 22 is formed around the leg 17, and secured thereto by means of spot welding as shown at .23 or the like. The ends of the coiled wire 22 are upstanding and sharpened to provide prongs or points at 24 and 25. These prongs are adapted to be inserted into the material of the collar and partially prevent movement of the stay with respect to the collar.

The tubular spring housing 19 can be-formed of sheet material which is rolled and has the seam secured or fastened. The ends of the housing can be closed, or partially closed, by means of tabs or ears such as shown at 26 in Fig. 4, and leaving a hole 27 through the bottom and a hole 28 through the top. A wire slide 29 formed of relatively stiff wire passes through the holes or openings 27 and 28 and completely through the housing 19. In proximity to each exposed end of the wire slide 29 there are bends formed at 30 and 31 to constitute stops and beyond these bends the ends are sharpened into prongs or points at 32 and 33. These ends 32 and 33 are adapted for insertion into the material of the collar and, in conjunction with the points or prongs 24, 25 will maintain the stay in the desired proper position with respect to the collar tab or wing. As will be seen from Fig. l, the point 33 is very close to the point of the collar and, in conjunction with the points 24 and 25, will maintain the collar in a taut condition and will prevent curling, wilting or other disarrangement of the material of the collar.

In order ot permit movement of the wire slide 29 for insertion into the material of the collar a coil spring 34 is carried internally in housing 19. Wire slide 29 is provided with a third bend at 35 which serves to limit movement of the wire with respect to the bottom of the housing 19 in an apparent manner, and also constitutes a base or seat for the spring 34. This construction permits free sliding movement of the wire slide 29 with respect to the housing, limited only by the bend 35, and when forced into retracted position against the action of the spring 34 will tend to return to extended position by coaction of the spring with the bend 35. In use the wire slide 29 is placed in retracted position and thereafter the point 33 is inserted in proximity to the point of the collar, in the material thereof, and the action of the spring 34 will maintain it in this position and serve to tauten the shirt as will be readilly understood.

The stay of the present invention, as pointed out hereinbefore, is particularly suited for use by military personnel. The open triangular shape permits the stay to be used when collar insignia are worn, without interference, which would not be the case of solid stays. The stay is additionally provided on the long leg 18 with a loop 36 formed in the wire material 15. The position of this loop 36 in the leg 18 is specifically designed for coaction with a rearmost pin 37 of a collar ornament or insignia. The collar ornament is shown in position in Fig. l and has a second pin 38. The pins of the ornament 39 are inserted through the material of the collar 11, andspring type fasteners 40 and 41 of a known type: are then placed thereover. As seen in Fig. 3 the loop 36 passes over and surrounds pin 37 and is held in position by means of the spring fastener 40. This coaction of the pin 37 and loop 36 rigidifies the over-all structure and particularly that of the long leg 18. In the event that the prong 3.3 becomes disengaged from the collar material, the loop 36 will still hold the stay in position, and it cannot be lost or displaced from its original position. The construc-' tion of the loop and its positioning behind the collar ornament do not cause any bulging and as a matter of fact this arrangement serves to hide the collar stay.

Manifestly minor changes in construction and details will be apparent to those skilled in the art to which the invention pertains without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A collar stay comprising a wire frame of generally triangular configuration open in the center, a spring housing secured at an apex of the triangular frame, a single piece wire fabric engaging member slidably inserted in said spring housing and having a portion extending outwardly from said frame at the said apex, spring means in said housing operatively connected with said fabric engaging member and biasing said member to an extended position, a bend in said wire in said housing constituting stop means for determining full extension of said wire out of said housing and additionally a seat for said-spring.

2. A collar stay as claimed in claim 1, the extended end of said wire fabric engaging member being pointed, a second bend being formed in the wire spaced from the pointed 4 end and constituting stop means for the insertion of th pointed end of said fabric engaging member.

3. A collar stay as claimed in claim 1, a coil spring around and secured to the leg of the triangular frame opposite the apex from which said fabric engaging member extends, the ends of said coil spring being pointed and extending outwardly from said frame and constituting additional fabric engaging means for positioning and securing said stay and preventing sideways slipping.

4. A collar stay as claimed in claim 1, a leg of said triangular frame having a loop formed therein, said loop being adapted for surrounding and coacting with a pin of a collar ornament extending through a collar to thereby prevent dislodgement of the stay if said fabric engaging member is inadvertently disengaged.

5. A collar stay comprising a wire frame having a first leg adapted to extend substantially parallel and along an inner edge of a collar, a second leg adapted for extending along the fold of a collar, a third leg interconnecting said first and second legs at an acute angle to each, a spring biased slidable fabric engaging member mounted at the juncture point of said first leg and said third legand ex? tending outwardly from said frame to engage in the fabric at the point of a collar, a coil spring surrounding and secured to said second leg and having pointed endstherejon adapted for insertion in a collar fabric in spaced positions along the fold thereof to prevent sidewise slipping of the stay.

6. A collar stay as claimed in claim 5, said third leg having a loop formed therein adapted for securing on'a collar insignia pin fastened on a collar to prevent dislodgement of said stay if the fabric engaging member becomes disengaged.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,372,752 Vaccarella Apr. 3, *1945 2,431,053 Less Nov. 18, 1947 2,656,542 Herman Oct. 27,1953

FOREIGN PATENTS 581,630 Great Britain Oct. 13, 1946 

